Homosexuality

A man I know, a mutual friend of several of my friends, who I did not know very well at all until recently decided to announce publicly that he is gay. This is a topic that raises a lot of strong emotions in the circles I run in, usually resoundingly negative. I do not want to explore whether homosexuality, whether in the feelings or in acting upon them is a sin, though that is likely the central issue. How should a Christian respond?

My biggest gripe with the church I am familiar with (not a church, but the culture of church that I know) is that we, like everyone before, have certain offences that are higher on our list than others. We choose to single out certain deeds (homosexuality, abortion) as the topic of our ire and angst about the state of the world, while seemingly ignoring other problems (genocide, slavery, famine) in the world.

I desperately wish that we could drop all our pretense and seek God as a broken, messed up and lost people. I wonder if our public displays of contrition are genuine, or simply the things we are expected to say and do. I wonder if in worship we truly stand speechless in awe of the Almighty, or if we use high words to say "thinking about God makes me warm and fuzzy."

And I wish that we did not feel so confident in our interpretation of Scripture in some matters. Having a systematic theology is well and good, but I believe that we need the humility so say that we could be wrong about some things, perhaps many things. The Pharisees were as studious as an y seminarian, perhaps more so. We say that they were more concerned with status, and so missed the Messiah they were looking for. But are we setting up a straw man? These were real, presumably genuine men. I get nervous when I hear them discussed as characters in a play, instead of men just like me.

If our interpretation of Scripture causes us to call down fire from heaven upon the unrighteous, I worry about that interpretation. The example I have of Jesus is of a man who cared for the outcasts, the sinners, the people shunned by society while maintaining a sometimes cool, sometimes hostile attitude to the professional theologians.

For me, the Christian life is one spent following Jesus. Correctly reading and applying the Scriptures is an aide in this. The guiding of the Holy Spirit is another. This means a life among the sick, for they need the doctor. It is a life of rejoicing when one lost sheep is returned to the fold, or when a son thought dead comes home. It is a life of "follow me," existing not simply as an exhortation to "follow him," but a life I can invite those close to me to emulate.

How do I respond to this man? He has a heart for the homosexual community to come to know the person of Jesus. He wants to serve those the church has cast aside. Those I know that knew him before his announcement considered him a Godly man. So I will allow for now that his heart is what it seems to be. I will pray for him, as I understand what it is to feel like an outsider, or even to feel unwelcome, though in a different context. I have heard how the Christian cummunity has often responded to such men, with vitriol and hatred that it chills me to hear. And I understand growing older with desires for physical companionship being wholly unmet, though in a different context. To feel I am a freak for never having even been on a date is one thing. I imagine to be told you are a freak by those you worship God with because you like men instead of women being about the lonliest thing in the entire world.

In the uncertain land of right and wrong, I want to choose the side of grace and love. Support for the hurting. Help for the weak. Solidarity with those who feel alone. Not accepting sinful behavior, but not being hasty to label things I am uncertain of as sin. Who am I to judge another man's servant? To his own master will he rise or fall.